Can You Get Workers’ Compensation For A Heart Attack At Work?

A heart attack is a serious cardiovascular event that can be life threatening, and while they are directly caused by blockages in your coronary arteries, they are oftentimes brought on by stress and overexertion. Depending on where you work, stress and physical exertion may be a daily combination, so it begs the question, could you get workers’ compensation if you suffer a heart attack on the job? After all, it’s likely that your actions played a part in the onset of your heart attack.

Heart Attacks and Workers’ Compensation

A case can be made for both the worker and the employer’s insurance company as to whether or not compensation should be granted for a cardiovascular event on the job. Stress and physical activity from your job likely contributed to your heart attack, but on the other hand, stress and activity are almost a given in any workplace, so it’s not like you didn’t know what you were getting into when you took the job.

Moreover, other factors outside of work, like your exercise habits, your diet and your family history all play a role in your likelihood of suffering a heart attack, and your employer’s insurance company has no control over these factors. Why should they have to pay out to someone who doesn’t exercise and eats a poor diet simply because their heart attack happened during working hours?

Tough Case To Prove, But Not Impossible

In general, the workers’ compensation system sides with the insurance companies when it comes to paying out claims for heart attacks suffered on the job. There are a lot of factors that contribute to a heart attack, so it’s very difficult to prove that your job was a proximate cause of its onset. That being said, it’s certainly not impossible to get compensation after an on-the-job cardiovascular event.

In order to receive compensation, you must prove that your work duties clearly contributed to the heart attack. How can you do this? With the help of an experienced workers’ compensation lawyer like Dean Margolis. He’ll take a close look at all the factors of your job and your actions leading up to the condition and make a case that your job was a direct cause of your heart attack. If he can find that you were overworked, overexerted or improperly cared for and these actions had a negative effect on your cardiovascular health, you may be eligible for compensation.

So if you’re wondering if you can receive compensation if you or a loved one suffered a heart attack on the job, reach out to Margolis Law Firm today. It’s going to be tough, and you’re almost assured to get an initial denial, so you want a lawyer on your side you can put together a clear and precise argument to prove your claim. We’ve done it before and we’ll do it again. Contact our office today for more information.